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News

Annual Change in First-Time International Graduate Applications and Enrollment in the United States, by Selected Country or Region of Origin, Fall 2012 to Fall 2017

Almanac 2018 August 19, 2018

For the first time in more than a decade, international applications for first-time enrollment in graduate school at American institutions decreased from the previous year, and so did first-time enrollment. Although the number of applications from China and India dropped, they still represented nearly two-thirds of all international applications for master’s, graduate certificate, and doctoral programs.

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For the first time in more than a decade, international applications for first-time enrollment in graduate school at American institutions decreased from the previous year, and so did first-time enrollment. Although the number of applications from China and India dropped, they still represented nearly two-thirds of all international applications for master’s, graduate certificate, and doctoral programs.


Return to the Almanac home page, or go to the Profession, Students, Finance, or States section. To purchase a copy of the Almanac in print or as a downloadable interactive PDF, visit the Chronicle Store. Help guide us to give you the data you need by taking our 10-minute online Almanac survey.


Country
or region
of origin
Applications,
2012 to 2013
Enrollment,
2012 to 2013
Applications,
2013 to 2014
Enrollment,
2013 to 2014
Applications,
2014 to 2015
Enrollment,
2014 to 2015
Applications,
2015 to 2016
Enrollment,
2015 to 2016
Applications,
2016 to 2017
Enrollment,
2016 to 2017
China -3% 5% -1% -1% 0% 12% 4% 0% -1% 5%
India 22% 40% 33% 27% 10% 12% -1% -7% -15% -13%
South Korea -15% -12% -5% -7% 4% 5% -5% 10% -8% -12%
Europe -2% 3% 3% 1% -5% -4% 0% 8% 18% 1%
Canada -5% 3% 1% -1% 3% 1% -12% -3% -9% -7%
Latin America and Caribbean - - - - -1% -6% -3% 5% -4% -10%
Middle East and North Africa - - - - 2% 1% -5% -11% -17% -5%
Sub-Saharan Africa - - - - 7% 9% -9% 3% 12% 27%
All foreign countries 2% 10% 10% 8% 3% 5% 1% 5% -3% -1%

Note: Data for fall 2016 to fall 2017 are based on responses from 377 institutions to a survey conducted in the fall of 2017. Annual change is measured from the fall of one year to the next. Several countries and regions that are not shown separately in the chart are included in the percentages for “All foreign countries.” A hyphen indicates data were not available. More data can be found here. Questions or comments on the Almanac should be sent to the Almanac editor.

Source: Council of Graduate Schools, “International Graduate Applications and Enrollment: Fall 2017"

A version of this article appeared in the August 24, 2018, issue.
Read other items in Students: Almanac 2018.
We welcome your thoughts and questions about this article. Please email the editors or submit a letter for publication.
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